[SmilinIrish]

I am preparing to play a Mage for the first time.  I thought I had a good grasp on magic until I started trying to actually grasp all the numbers.

It seems like a Mage is likely to cast force 4 spells a lot to avoid drain (assuming drain dice pool of 10-12).  Is this true?

What are ways to increase your dice pool for drain?  Raise Magic/Drain Attribute (expensive).  centering Metamagic.  Centering focus.
           Ally Spirit from the SG.  Anything else?  I guess a power focus would raise magic and thereby your drain stat. 

In regard to using Reagents to change the limit on spells, it seems that spells which depend on net hits would benefit from using reagents to set a higher limit (direct combat spells, Cast at low force to mitigate drain, set higher limit for more net hits for damage).  Another good use would be to set force at the level of your sustaining focus, and use reagents to increase limits to get the higher net hits (ie: improve reflexes). 

Can you sustain spells (with focused concentration) even while resting to recover from drain?

[SpellBinder]

Increase your dice pool for drain?  I honestly wouldn't use a spirit for aid, especially an Ally Spirit as that's quite expensive in the karma in the first place.  The only other thing available that you haven't mentioned yet is a fetish (Street Grimoire, page 212), which reduces the drain of the spell tied to it by 2.  The drawback is that you can't cast the spell without the fetish, but on the plus side you can spend karma for the spell twice to learn both versions.

A Power Focus doesn't add to your drain resistance.  You resist drain with Willpower + Charisma/Intuition/Logic (based on whatever tradition you choose), so a buff to Magic won't help you there.  It doesn't even affect the level when Stun drain becomes Physical, it simply adds its Force to any magic test tied to your Magic Attribute (including Counterspelling, provided it's not for Spell Defense).  The only focus that will, which you mentioned (and I don't think officially exists in SR5), is the Centering Focus.

I don't see why you couldn't keep a spell sustained while you spend an hour or more recovering from drain damage, though I suspect that a GM will rule that you lose the spell as soon as you fall asleep.

[Darzil]

Looks like some drugs can also help a bit, though the downsides of some might be a bit extreme.

[8-bit]

The only focus that will, which you mentioned (and I don't think officially exists in SR5), is the Centering Focus.

It exists.

[SmilinIrish]

It is in the listed of metamagic focus

[firebug]

It seems like a Mage is likely to cast force 4 spells a lot to avoid drain (assuming drain dice pool of 10-12).  Is this true?

Since spells have different drain values, you're best off deciding what the highest drain value you're comfortable with is.  Three drain is usually low enough to expect to resist it all on average, which means F6 Lightning Bolt, F6 Punch, etc.  For buff spells, you'll usually have to accept at least 4 unless you use reagents because you need the higher limit and many of them have DV = F for drain.

The easiest way to increase your drain resistance pool is via Increase Attribute spells.  If you have Focused Concentration high enough that works, but I've built some characters who purposefully only have a 4 base in WIL so they can begin with a F4 Sustaining Focus (Health) and use that to sustain a F4 Increase Willpower.  With an Elf, you can easily have 8 CHA and 4 WIL base, meaning that'd be 16 dice to resist drain.

Alternatively, be another metatype and add Focus Concentration 6 and rather than 8, have 6 LOG or CHA and buy the appropriate Inc. Attribute spell for that.  That can have you with 18 dice and no penalties for sustaining the two spells.  And you probably didn't even take any drain damage from casting them, so you're good.

Then, since you either have 10 LOG or 10 CHA, you'd be pretty great at, say...  First Aid or Negotiation, whatever you build for.

Or Intuition!  Forgot there's Intuition traditions.  Oh man the Perception and Assensing dice...

[SmilinIrish]

I just saw this spell for the first time today.  Totally planning on checking that out for my Intuition based mage.  I see now why you say start with 4, because that is the highest you can have Focused Conc at char gen (or foci).

I think I am going to choose the spell for Intuition, and sacrifice the ability to sustain right out of char gen. I'm planning on taking quickening as my first metamagic.  Gotta have that quickened impr reflexes. I don't want to sacrifice long term dice for short term convenience.  This isn't a one shot character.  It will be fine coming out of character gen with less drain dice, and pick it up as he gets more powerful. 

The benefits of increased intuition:  boosted street knowledge, boosted perception and assensing, boosted dodge (rea + int).  I like this.  Obviously I can have the quickened spells dispelled, but hopefully not. 

[SpellBinder]

The only focus that will, which you mentioned (and I don't think officially exists in SR5), is the Centering Focus.

It exists.

It is in the listed of metamagic focus

Yeah, was looking for metamagic foci in the poorly ordered Street Grimoire since it was in the previous edition's Street Magic instead of the core book.  Did find it in the SR5 core book instead.

[Marcus]

Drain pool is very much the limiting factor of magic, drain pool is actually fairly hard to mess with, unlike past editions where there were ways to  raise it, beyond focusing there isn't really much that can be done about, and to be clear focusing isn't exactly a doing a lot.

As to where folks will cast spells is answer is that it will vary a LOT. If you want to keep doing it without taking much/any drain, I'd aim for not needing more hits on the test then (1/3)*drain pool. This isn't perfect by any means but law of Averages. The question really is more how comfortable your character will be with S drain vs P drain. With work its totally possible to get to the point where you can throw spells with force that exceeds magic rating and have a good chance of eating no drain. 

[living]

I'm planning on taking quickening as my first metamagic.  Gotta have that quickened impr reflexes.

I'm not sure about the background count raw (because i don't really like it). If you leave an area with bc, do your quickend and sustained spells get the hits back which they lost before?

Even if they do, it's the weak spot of quickening (beside beeing not able to mask the spells).

[Senko]

I have to admit I was disapointed when I realized centering added initiate grade to the drain roll not magic rating.

[Reaver]

quickening spells comes with it's own downfalls. Just be prepared for them.

[SmilinIrish]

hahaha.  Yes.  I imagine that I won't be quickening spells unless its do or die, and someone can carry me out.

[Tarislar]

While you can plan on improving dice in the long run.
I'd suggest at Chargen that you look at spells that are effective & have lower drain codes.

Lightning Bolt is F-3 so you should have 0 issues tossing it at Force-7 for Drain-4 & resisting that w/ 11 dice most the time.

A Force-2 Health Sustaining Focus at Chargen is still fairly cheap & easy to bind & is a great way to run around w/ a 2+1d boost to Initiative w/o using any reagents or a higher 4+2d boost if you use 4+ reagents when you cast it.

[Tarislar]

I have to admit I was disapointed when I realized centering added initiate grade to the drain roll not magic rating.

I REALLY think that it should be Grade*2.